


The Peverell Connection

by MasterChaos1



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Slytherin Harry Potter, Slytherin Hermione Granger, Wrong Boy-Who-Lived (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-12 08:53:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28507749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MasterChaos1/pseuds/MasterChaos1
Summary: Harry Potter knew how it felt to be alone, it was how he had grown up. When he arrived at Hogwarts he had expected a quiet school where he could study magic in peace, but never had he been more wrong. Hogwarts was filled with mysteries, each one of them out for the blood of two children in the school, Harry himself and Lucinda Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived...
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Harry Potter, James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter 1

~~*~~  
**Prologue  
**~~*~~

_A soft and cold wind rustled his clothes as he ran a hand through his midnight black hair and forced back a heavy sigh about the situation he found himself in. They were not supposed to be here, in this forest, on a mission that could very possibly end in complete disaster, spelling a heavy loss for them, if not the end of the war. He didn't even know why they had decided to follow the two of them to this area. The plan, in theory, was quite simple. Lucinda and himself had to go into the lair of the Knights, the ones who were at the centre of this entire mess that was the war. They were to extract key information from their base and get out as quickly as possible._

The two of us could have done it very easily… I think. _Harry thought to himself as he sighed once again. He couldn't even bring himself to look around at all of the people that had gathered there with them because he feared that something quite disastrous might occur and he would lose some of the people he loved. He shivered a little as a cold blast of wind hit him with full force,_ Godammit, why is it so fucking cold here? It's July! _He had almost spoken the incantation for the warming charm with his wand pointed at himself when he felt a soft pair of arms encircling him from behind._

_Now, on normal days, Harry would have melted right into the embrace of those arms as it was one of the places where he felt quite safe but unfortunately, today was not one of those days. "Not right now, Hermione. I need to focus on how we're going to handle things here." Harry unwound himself from the embrace of his girlfriend for a reason that was only partially true. A much bigger reason as to why he didn't want to be close to his girlfriend at that moment was that he was irritated at her. Harry was pretty sure that of the eight people that had followed himself and his twin sister to Galloway Forest, Hermione had been the one to convince them._

_Harry had been quite surprised when he had learned that the location of the lair was in a forest so close to Hogwarts. He had first thought that the Knights would have been much smarter in basing their location that close to the castle but then he had realised that their location made quite a lot of sense given their history with one of the founders. Harry hummed a little to himself as he looked towards the very prominent embroidered gate that had two snakes curling around a sword that was glistening with emeralds. The gate was surrounded by a few hedges running beside it but there was just something about them that told Harry that they were not hedges._

Something isn't right here, _Harry thought, shaking his head_. Why would the Knights basically advertise their location? No, they're much smarter than this. _He's_ much smarter than this. _Harry ran a hand over the snakewood wand in his hand and smiled a little at his relatively new companion. He had gone through quite a bit of work exactly a year ago when he had been on the search for a new wand after a certain someone had broken his wand at the Department of Mysteries._

I will find you, Lucas. And once I do I will have my revenge on you. _Harry swore to himself as he tightly gripped his wand in anger as he was reminded of the betrayal that had led to the death of…_ No, I can't think of that right now. _Harry shook his head a little as he felt a slight prickle of tears in his eyes. He raised his left hand and wiped it off just when he felt a hand grasp his shoulder tightly. Harry looked to his left and saw the familiar face of his godfather as the man stared towards the horizon._

_Sirius Black began speaking, "I know you miss him, Harry. I do too. God, I miss him so much. But, we have to carry on with this fight because I know that's what he would have wanted. And we have to win, there's no option because all of us know that if they win, the world is doomed, and Britain will only be the first to fall." Harry looked into Sirius's grey eyes as he turned towards him, and Harry was sure there were a few tears in the man's eyes._

" _I know Sirius. I know." Harry muttered to himself before he moved away from the man's grasp and walked towards the table where they had laid out the tentative map of the entire_ maze _._

Honestly, what is it with bad guys having a freaking maze as their hideouts? _Harry thought as he looked at the confusing map. It was going to be a little hard to cover, but there was a part of him that was slightly grateful for the extra manpower they had. It would make it easier to cover a lot of ground._

" _So, what's the plan?"_

_Harry looked up from the map as he stared at the person who had spoken. He picked up the map in his hands and said,_ "You _are doing nothing in this plan Ronald Weasley. I don't know why you're even here. There is absolutely no need for you in this mission Weasley." Harry finished and turned around as he focused back on the map._

_Harry swore as the map was snatched out of his hands almost instantly and he stared at his twin, "Lucinda, give me the map please." He held out one of his hands as he finished with a small polite smile on his face that promised pain if Lucinda didn't hand him the map as he had requested._

_Lucinda pushed up her glasses a little as she said, "No, I will not Harry. Simply because you can't talk to one of my best friends like that. He's here for a reason and that reason is to help us in this mission." She put her hands on her hips as she stared into Harry's emerald eyes with a challenge glinting in her hazel ones. Both of them continued staring at each other neither one willing to back down. Harry broke away his gaze from the girl, not because he admitted defeat because staring into those hazel eyes reminded Harry too much of a certain someone._

" _We didn't_ need _any help, Lucinda." Harry began pacing around the forest as he started to vent out his frustrations over the whole situation, "We both know that we could have done this quite easily._ They _,"_ _Harry jabbed his thumb towards the entirety of the group, "Didn't have to come at all."_

" _Harry…" Hermione began in the soft voice she often used when she knew that something was troubling him, "There's no point in being angry with me or the others. I care about you too much to let you walk to what could very possibly be a suicide mission! You have got to understand that!" Hermione's voice gained a much steelier tone as she reached the end of the sentence._

_Harry ran a hand through his messy black hair and as he opened his mouth to say something his emerald eyes locked with the pale blue eyes of his best friend, Theodore Nott. The other Slytherin mouthed to him, "No point in arguing." Harry may have backed down another day but when he was worried about the safety of the most important woman in the world to him, he would not back down. He turned back to Hermione and said, "It was never a suicidal mission, Hermione! Both of us perfectly knew what we were getting into. We had to just go into the lair, gather information on how the fuck the knights are still alive and get out! It was simple and we would have been fine on our own!"_

_Hermione glared at him as her eyes shined with anger, "Really?! Do you really believe that? Do you really think that the two of you would have been able to survive against an army that has been alive for centuries?!" Hermione's voice rose in volume as she continued speaking._

" _Yes!" Harry turned around with a jerk to face the maze as he pointed at it with his wand, "Yes, I believed that the two of us could have gone through this because we can fight them. They might have been alive for centuries, and sure, they have the backing of one of the most powerful Dark Lords in the world but we're no easy targets. It was a simple_ espionage _mission that could have been done without any of you," Harry waved his hand over the others, "Having to endanger yourselves because of this!"_

_Harry looked into Hermione's eyes and just as she was about to say something, a new voice snapped the two out of their staredown. "Will the both of you just shut up?!" Harry turned to the voice of one Daphne Greengrass as she continued, "Can the both of you just can it right now? We're standing in front of the lair, we have a set motive and we have a team._ You _,"_ _Daphne pointed one of her blue fingernails at Harry, "Can't change that now and_ you _," She pointed at Hermione, "Should know better than to argue with Harry. You know he's just worried about our safety after what happened last year and we_ did _come here without telling either him or Potter over there." Daphne jerked her head towards Lucinda, who simply rolled her eyes._

_Harry and Hermione looked at each other and both decided to listen to the girl because they were on a ticking clock and couldn't afford to lose more time. But also, Daphne could get a little too scary if she wanted. "Fine," Harry muttered to himself before he spread the map over the wooden platform once again. He looked around at all the people present there and said, "So, these are the plans that one of our… or rather, one of Dumbledore's spies from within the lair provided us with. We'll be entering the whole thing together before splitting up in groups right about here." Harry pointed his wand at a clearing which separated into 5 different directions._

" _We will split into 2 groups of 2 people and 2 groups of 3 people each. We'll all be divided based on our strengths and weaknesses and ability to work with another person. Sirius and I will go through pathway 1, which leads to the centre of the maze. Hermione will be going through pathway 2, the one exactly to the left of the 1, with Luna." Harry did not raise his gaze from the map but he was sure that there were some…_ opinions _about his grouping. He continued nonetheless, "Theo, Daphne and Neville will go through pathway 3, and Ron, Lucinda and Emily will go together using pathway 4."_

_He looked at the map once more, making sure that he hadn't missed anything. Once he was satisfied, Harry nodded to himself and looked up from the map. "If you encounter any problems, remember, for the love of Merlin,_ please, _remember to send up our symbol into the sky. Anyone who sees it, I don't care what you're doing at that moment, rush to their aid because we're going directly into the lair of the enemy. We cannot lose anyone today, understood?" Harry asked as he looked all of them in the eye._

" _Understood." They repeated as one. It was only in moments like these, when Harry took charge in the middle of a battle, that he could see somewhat of a functional dynamic among this weird group._

" _Good. Make sure that everything is ready because, for the love of God, we cannot lose anybody today. All of you are too important to the war and honestly, we can't afford to take any more losses after last year. " Harry finished with a determined nod before he turned around and made sure that everything was ready for them as they entered the maze._

_After a few minutes, they were all standing in front of the embroidered gate that was not giving anyone a good feeling. "Well, here we go." Harry stepped up and waved his wand over the gate as he whispered,_ _"_ Alohomora _." When after a few seconds nothing happened, Harry facepalmed and muttered, "Damn. This is gonna make it much harder." He turned around to the others and said, "While we can find some other way to enter the maze, I don't want to risk taking more time. We're gonna blow up the gate and I know that's gonna alert any and all knights within the maze and that's why we'll be on a timer. We need to be in and out in a flash."_

_Harry turned back around to the gate and raised his wand, the rays of the sun shining on the emerald ring on his finger. He looked at it a little sadly and muttered, "I'll make you proud mum. I promise." He looked to his right and left and he smiled when he saw the determined faces of the people with him and he thought,_ I couldn't have asked for a better team to see this through, even Ron. _"On the count of three. One… Two…" Harry gripped his wand tightly, "Three!_ BOMBARDA MAXIMA _!" Just as the incantation left his mouth, nine others sent the same spell, and the silver gate in front of them was completely destroyed with a loud_ bang _!_

"Protego _!" Sirius roared and erected an invisible barrier to protect them from the debris of the destroyed gate. Harry nodded at Sirius and after a few seconds he shouted, "Let's go!" With that, all of them rushed into the pit of snakes, ready to fight anything that came their way._

_The soft patter of footsteps was all that Harry heard as they rushed into the maze and it scared him. The explosion should have been enough to alert the knights to their top of that, Harry found it odd that there were no guards placed at the entrance, nor was there any type of trap._ I just hope that this mission doesn't backfire. _Harry looked around the pathway they were walking through and the creepy greenery that was curling around the surprisingly cemented walls of the pathways. He looked up into the sky and if he really concentrated, he could see an invisible dome over the maze/lair, which perhaps, served the purpose of preventing aerial attacks and keeping out the effects of the weather._

BOOM!

_That was the sound that rang through his ears as they were traversing the maze. Harry looked to his left and his eyes widened when he saw what had caused the explosion._

_The Knights were here._

" _Bloody hell!" Harry cried out as he looked past the completely annihilated wall that was beside them. A large group was walking towards them as fast as their armour could carry them and they had their wands raised in their direction, "Split up! Split up now!" Harry cried out again as he saw an explosion curse being sent towards them. The entire group jumped in different directions and along with Sirius, Harry ran in a random direction after sending a spell towards the knights. He only hoped that their splitting up would slow down the knights a bit._

_With Sirius at his side, Harry ran frantically through the maze trying to find some hint as to how the Knights had been alive for so long._

BOOM!

_Harry was growing jittery and nervous as he kept hearing the loud noises of someone fighting and he could only hope that nothing too bad was happening to the others. He could feel the temperature getting colder by the minute and he rubbed he quickly applied a warming charm over himself and Sirius._

" _You want to tell me why you didn't pair up with Hermione today?" Harry heard Sirius's voice from beside and he almost froze. A part of him had been wondering when Sirius was gonna ask about that and while he wanted to answer him, he chose to act ignorant._

" _I don't know what you mean Sirius," Harry replied as they continued running and kept an eye out for anything dangerous._

_Harry could hear the man rolling his eyes as Sirius spoke again, "You really think that's going to work with me. All of us know that you and Hermione work perfectly together and you always have each other's back. So, of course, it was a surprise when you paired up with me and asked Hermione to go with Luna."_

_Harry opened his mouth to say something, but before he could do so, a thick layer of smoke covered the entire area and the entire conversation flew from Harry's mind as his survival instincts kicked in. Harry stood straight up as he looked around, his hand tightly curled around his wand. Harry heard the thump of footsteps and he knew that the Knights had surrounded them._

_He heard someone clicking their tongue, and Harry knew exactly who it was. His eyes hardened and the grip on his wand tightened dangerously. The emerald ring on Harry's finger began pulsing slightly as the anger Harry felt began channelling into the ring._

" _Did you really believe we wouldn't know about your presence within our home? How naive of you Lord Potter."_

_Harry snarled, "Ulrod."_

" _Oh!" The voice began in a mock surprised tone, "You remember me. I am very honoured, my lord. I cannot begin to express what I'm feeling right now."_

" _Harry," Sirius muttered, "Don't do anything stupid. We're here on a mission and we need to complete it. Do not lose your head right now. That is what Ulrod wants."_

" _Lord Black!" Ulrod proclaimed from somewhere within the blanket of smoke, "It's nice to see you again. I hope you're doing well. How's the former Lord Potter?" Harry's nostrils flared dangerously and before Sirius could do anything, he shouted out loud, "Shut up Ulrod! I swear to Merlin, I will find a way to kill the Knights forever and I will do it right in front of you!_ Confringo _!" Harry threw the curse in a random direction he assumed Ulrod to be in and then ran in the opposite direction so that he could find what they were all looking for._

Ulrod will die by my hand. I swear this on mother Magic herself. _Neither Harry nor Sirius noticed the small strip of blue light that rose from Harry's wand and spun around it before shooting towards Harry's chest and settling there, slowly vanishing and sealing the oath. "We need to find things fast, Sirius! The Knights are catching up to us." Harry yelled out, trying to be heard over the click of the armour that the Knights wore._

_As they kept navigating through the maze, Harry wondered if the others were safe and if they had found anything that could point them towards the secret of the Knights. Harry shivered once more, the adrenalin and sweat from running not being able to counter the cold that was rapidly descending on them, "Why is it so cold?!" He cried out a little frustrated._

_Just as they were about to turn around another bend, Harry saw something sparkling out of the corner of his eye. Instantly turning towards it, Harry called out, "Sirius! Come here." Harry kept a hand on his wand and his other hand went to his waist, where he had hidden a pocket knife Sirius had given to him. Sometimes, muggle means were more useful than magical means._

_Pushing away the tendrils of some plant, Sirius and Harry entered a clearing. Harry looked around the boundaries of the clearing and felt the cold creeping up on him again. A few seconds later, both of them froze, not because of the cold but because of the sight in front of them._

" _What. The. F-"_

BOOM!

_A loud explosion occurred right behind Harry, cutting him off abruptly. He felt his consciousness slip away and the darkness enveloped him completely._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is a rewrite of my previous work Harry Potter and the Knights Eternal. As stated above, I was not quite that happy with how I had written that version and thus, chose to begin writing it from scratch.
> 
> Feels so good to upload a chapter after 2 months. Life's been hectic quite a lot and there was a time where I didn't feel like writing. But, then came December where I decided to reevaluate Knights Eternal and well, I didn't feel quite that happy with it and decided to rewrite it in a better, more detailed way. Yes, I'm very indecisive at times (believe me, it's a problem) but I'm hoping this year goes well and I can complete the story… well, a major part of this at least.
> 
> The story is rated M. There will be swearing in the story as well as several snogging scenes in the later years. Smut is something I'm unsure about as of yet but it remains a possibility. The MAJOR reason as to why this story is rated this is because of the violence, gore and prominence of several triggering topics. I won't go into them just yet but I suggest you do not read this story if you are easily triggered. This story will be dark.
> 
> This chapter was beta read by NoirWolf5, Proton6 and Bob49 (on AO3).
> 
> That's all from me right now. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

~~*~~  
 **Part I: The Forgotten's Return**

**Chapter 1: All Hallows Eve  
** ~~*~~

**_30 January 1960, 11:16 P.M. - Unknown Location, France._ **

In a manor, hidden by magic from other wizards and by the dense forestry from muggles, a woman sat up tiredly on her bed after ten agonising hours of childbirth. She tucked her flaming red hair behind her ear as she looked at her eldest daughter holding one of her twin daughters and cooing at her.

The room was lit up with torches that were flickering with low flames giving off an eerie look. Two red couches were situated near the fireplace of the room and several tapestries in various colours were adorning the walls.

Her husband was chuckling as the other twin tried to grab at his blond beard. The woman smiled to herself as she felt a rare spot of joy in the dangerous times of war which were threatening her as the Queen of her nation. Her hopes were dashed as her sister and midwife walked into the room with sombre expressions on their faces.

Her sister began, "Marie, Jean… I d-don't know what to say to this."

Jean looked at his sister-in-law questioningly, "What's wrong, Aimée?"

She handed him a piece of parchment as Jean laid down Lily in the cot beside her bed. As Jean read the parchment, his eyes widened before they became tearful.

"Jean, what's wrong?"

Jean looked at her but did not say anything. He was holding back his tears with full force but could not completely stop them as a single tear ran down his cheek.

"WILL SOMEONE TELL ME WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" For someone weak from childbirth, her anger was still at par with any other woman. Jean and Aimée flinched and the two newborns began wailing. Her eldest daughter bounced Petunia in her arms and then picked up Lily as well, trying to calm both of them down.

"Marie, Lily is a witch but she doesn't have the gift of our people. And Petunia… she doesn't have magic."

An intense silence followed as both mother and daughter were shocked to their cores. One of them wasn't magical while the other didn't have the trait that was essential for the females of the family.

"But… But…" The oldest daughter tried to form some words but she failed to do so. Marie, meanwhile, looked ready to bawl like a baby when her husband spoke the words she had been dreading, "You know what we have to do, honey."

"N-N-No. I will not give away my daughters, Jean. I will not." She frantically shook her head. The daughter who could walk on her legs also had tears in her eyes as she realised that she would not be able to take care of her little sisters.

"Daddy, please don't take away Lily and 'Tuney."

Jean kneeled in front of his eldest child and looked into her identical emerald green eyes, "I'm sorry Apolline. To keep your sisters safe, we have to give them away."

Marie recognised the tone her husband used from her bed. It was the tone he used when there could be no argument but she wasn't going to back down just yet.

"Jean, pl-please. I can't."

Jean heard the pleading tone in his wife's voice as he kissed her forehead and wrapped his arms around her. He rubbed her back comfortingly as he said, "Honey, we have to. We prepared for the possibility of a non-magic child and this is what we came up with. The war against the Dark Ones is our war, not for the two of them. They can live a long and peaceful life... in England. Once the war is over we can tell them the truth."

"But…"

This time, Aimée cut her off, "Marie, we can't do anything else. We have to give the two of them to the Evans. Robert and Johanna will be able to take good care of them and will be able to protect them by concealing their identity under different surnames. I've known Robert since we were kids and Johanna is as good as a sister to me. You've known both of them for at least a decade and Johanna and you talk almost every day. They're the only people we can truly trust apart from Aimée plus, they'll be far away from here and the reach of the Dark Ones."

Marie knew that Jean and Robert had been childhood friends. They had grown up with each other, Jean being a muggle-born and Robert a muggle, and had often spent their time together except for the times when Jean went to Beauxbatons. Jean could never hold anything from his best friend and had told Robert about the existence of magic and thus, they communicated via owl even during the days Jean was at Beauxbatons. Marie had met Robert and Johanna when she and Jean had begun dating and since then the two couples had been extremely close to each other. But, soon enough, due to certain circumstances, the other couple had to move to Britain.

"What about the discrimination prominent against Muggleborns in Britain?"

Aimée laid a hand on the forearm of her sister as Apolline tackled both her mother and father, "Lily is a daughter of the Queen of our Nation, she will be so magically strong she won't ever have anybody trying to bully her. Plus, if I am to guess by Apolline's temper at times, she's going to be one fiery girl who won't let herself be browbeaten others."

Marie glared at Aimée who gave her an innocent smile. Marie sighed and thought over the situation for a moment. She knew in her mind that this was the best plan but she also knew in her heart that she could never see this through if she was awake. She looked at the emerald green eyes of Lily and then the blue eyes of Petunia which were so similar to her. She kissed both of them on the forehead and she took a vial of the sleep potion on her bedside table.

"Try to keep them safe, will you?" And she gulped down the contents of the vial. A few seconds later, Marie fell asleep soundly on her bed. Smiling to themselves, Jean and Aimeé walked out of the room along with Apolline, leaving the woman with her two newborn twins.

The couple did not know that they would never meet their two daughters, whom they had given away, because they would perish in the war before it came to an end. Apolline would grow up with her aunt in relative peace, but she would never forget her two sisters.

The next time she saw them would be years later at the behest of her sister's son, the man who had grown up to bear the burden of the world on his shoulders.

* * *

**_31 October 1981, 8:46 P.M. - Potter Cottage, Godric's Hollow_ **

A married couple sat peacefully on a red couch in the living room of Potter Cottage. Potter Cottage was a respite from the awfully formal lives pureblood lords had to lead in Wizarding Britain. While it may not have been comfortable, it was a necessity because of the small population.

Potter Cottage was a quaint house. It was a two-storey house, much smaller than the seven-storeyed Potter Manor which was located in a… secret location. The first floor consisted of the living room which was decorated with three couches, a fireplace and two tables. It also had a small kitchen and the dining room where the entire family had their meals together.

The second floor consisted of three bedrooms. The biggest one belonged to the Lord and Lady Potter, Charlus Potter and Dorea Persephone Potter née Black. The second room belonged to the Heir and Heiress Potter, James Potter and Lily Potter née Evans. The third room was a nursery for the future heir, Harry James Potter and his twin sister, Lucinda Alexandra Potter.

Charlus Potter smiled as he looked at his wife Dorea sitting on one of the couches with Harry and laughing merrily as the boy pulled at her black curls playfully. Meanwhile, Charlus was sitting on another couch with his granddaughter Lucinda as she stared at Harry and Dorea giggling happily. Even though the twins were only slightly older than one, Charlus had noticed several differences in their behaviour. Harry was the more active one, preferring to play and walk or cause some random mischief, while Lucinda was the more quiet one but still loved to cause mischief. Charlus felt that they made quite a good combination and he could only imagine what kind of chaos they would cause at Hogwarts together.

The thought of chaos at Hogwarts made the older man think about his son and Sirius Black, the Heir Black. _Those two would have brought Hogwarts down if not for Lily._ Charlus chuckled to himself a little at that thought. Charlus's smile widened a little as he remembered where the woman in question was right now. James and Lily had decided to go out on a _date_ for All Hallows Eve and Charlus was happy that they did. They needed some time alone together given the twins they were handling and… the war.

The thought caused Charlus to sigh. It was a time of a war that had stretched over for nearly ten years and they were no close to the end of the war. It was hard to find moments like these, doubly so when the Dark Lord was after his family specifically. He was proud that Lily and James weren't letting the pressures get to them and were simply enjoying life as it progressed.

He sat up straight when he heard a slight tinkling sound echo throughout the cottage.

The wards had been breached.

Charlus looked into Dorea's black eyes and he nodded. Both of them had already gone through a war and their communication was unmatched. They would have faced Voldemort together but they had two more important people to take care of. Harry and Lucinda were the future of their house and they would protect them no matter what.

Dorea stood up with her arms completely around the two children as she ran upstairs as fast as possible. As soon as he heard the bolting of the nursery door, the front door of Potter Cottage was blown open.

Charlus wandlessly summoned his wand from the other side of the living room. He had been feared by Grindelwald for a reason in the Global Wizarding War.

"Tom." Charlus stared into the blood-red eyes of the half-blood, Tom Marvolo Riddle, who liked to call himself Lord Voldemort.

Voldemort sneered, "Do not call me by my filthy muggle father's name, Potter."

Charlus used the Gryffindorish foolhardiness which seemed to kick in during life-threatening situations as he mocked the strongest Dark Lord of the century, "Why? Is the little half-blood afraid of his father's name?"

_Dorea's gonna murder me in the afterlife for this._

As they both stared at each other, for a moment, Charlus was sorely tempted to try and break into Voldemort's mind using legilimency he had learned over the years. He wanted to know what was going in the monster's mind but resisted the urge to do it because he could not risk Voldemort getting into his head.

"Charlus Potter. You foolish, foolish man. If you would have joined me, I would have spared your family, even that uppity mudblood, Lily Evans. Your family would have been safe but sadly you chose the other path. You chose to follow the path of the Light led by that manipulative old coot who everybody fawns over. I would never have expected the Ancient and Noble House of Potter to bend over for a Noble House."

Charlus barely reigned in his anger, "We did not bend over for Dumbledore. He is a manipulative old man who likes to have everyone under his thumb. I might have chosen the path of the Light but I never followed Dumbledore."

Voldemort let out a cold and harsh laugh, "What do you think is going to happen when you die today, Lord Potter? James has a case of hero-worship in Dumbledore. He would do almost anything for the man. Do you really believe that somehow House Potter will not be acting at the whims of House Dumbledore?"

Charlus gritted his teeth because he knew Voldemort was speaking the truth. His son worshipped the ground Albus stood on. That was the main reason he joined Dumbledore's Order despite Lily's protests.

"Now that I have delivered the truth to you, I guess your usefulness is over. _Avada Kedavra."_ The green beam of light shot through the pale yew wand in Voldemort's right hand. Charlus conjured up a brick wall which took the full force of the Killing Curse. The debris flew through the room, trashing everything in sight.

" _Effusus Sanguis. Fragmina Ossis."_ The blood boiling and bone breaker curse left his wand in a second and Voldemort conjured objects from thin air to block the two attacks. Charlus followed up with, " _Stupefy. Reducto. Bombarda Maxima. Avada Kedavra."_

Voldemort laughed with glee as he saw the Killing Curse leave Charlus's wand, "Now, now, Lord Potter. An Unforgivable? What would Dumbledore say? He would say that everyone deserves a second chance, even little ol' me, the Greatest Dark Lord of the century."

The casual way with which Voldemort was dodging, blocking and then attacking made Charlus realise that he was too old for this. Even though Voldemort was about sixty as well, he had the magical and physical regenerative rituals behind him. Charlus decided that the only option was to rile him up.

"What's that, Voldie? The Greatest Dark Lord? Oh no, you are sadly mistaken. Grindelwald was a much bigger challenge for me!" Charlus shouted as he dodged another chain of curses.

Voldemort's eyes flashed with anger as he let his pride speak, "I am far greater than Gellert GRINDELWALD! He failed where I succeeded, gaining the loyalty of the true Knights of Walpurgis!"

Charlus almost froze up in fear when he heard Voldemort's proclamation. He could feel a chill run down his spine as he completely registered the words Voldemort had spoken, but he decided to play it cool. "Funny, I don't see them."

A cold and oppressive air seemed to encompass the Cottage as the words left his mouth. Voldemort felt it too but instead of fear, his facial expression showed victory and triumph. A slow clapping rang through the Cottage along with the clang of swords against an armour of sorts. A deep voice spoke through the silence, "How naive of you, Lord Potter. Did you really think that we would reveal ourselves before our victory was ensured? Your family is the only one in the way of our Lord and then our Lord will rule Magical Britain."

Two men stepped through the debris that was the front door. They were dressed in black dragon-hide armour with a steel sword strapped on their belts and wand holsters plastered on their left wrists. The crest on their left breasts truly froze Charlus.

The crest was two snakes entwined around a silver sword which was glistening with green emeralds. The crest of the Knights of Walpurgis. The Knights who led the first and original blood purity war. The war which had been led by Salazar Slytherin's son. The war that had caused the deaths of over hundreds of muggles before Slytherin's son was put down by Godric Gryffindor himself.

The two men had silver helmets which had two protruding horns. They slowly took them off and he was met by two… elves. They were about five feet tall in height and had long silver hair that was tied into a neat braid. Their ears were long and pointed, they had scar-like ridges over their cheeks and their eyes were a deep red. Their skin was a pale red much closer to the colour pink.

"Surprised by our appearance?"

His expression told them the answer. He had never in his life expected that the Knights were elves. In all the books he had read about them they had been described as humans and even though the chances of him meeting them had been close to none, he had always thought they would resemble humans in a way. But, the proof was in front of him. The Knights were not humans but a breed of elves.

The Knight on the left chuckled, "Yes. Exposure to the Dark Arts for over four centuries can do this to you. We have become what you could call Dark Elves. Humans but the Dark Arts have turned us into elves to increase our resilience to magic."

"The Knights… How are you still alive?"

As expected, Charlus received no answer from the Knights. Even if they knew that he was going to die, they wouldn't reveal something so significant in the territory of the enemy. If he had been in their shoes, he wouldn't have done it given the eavesdropping charms linked to Potter Manor.

Voldemort spoke up soon after, "Enough of this. You two, take care of him while I take care of the brats." He said in an offhand manner and fear gripped Charlus's heart which was instantly calmed down as he heard Dorea whisper into her Lady Potter ring, "It's done. If what we suspect is true, Voldemort will at least be indisposed from today".

Once those words were spoken, Charlus was ready to accept Death, like an old friend, with open arms.

Voldemort made his way through the second floor blasting things for the sake of it. He blasted the third door he reached open, to see Dorea Potter talking slowly to the twins who were lying in a single cradle. "Harry, Lucinda, always remember that your family loves you and nothing you do will ever change that. We will always support you no matter what." Voldemort sneered at the words but said nothing in regards to them and walked further into the room. In his arrogance, Voldemort failed to notice the runes that were inscribed on the cradle.

"Dorea Black, a shame to waste such pure blood. If you would have just joined my cause with the rest of your family."

Dorea turned around with a fire in her eyes, "Sirius never supported you."

Voldemort sneered, "Yes, the Black that has caused many problems to me along with your son. Nevermind, I'll take care of those two after I take care of these two grandchildren of yours. Now, you can either step aside or you can taste the wrath of my Killing Curse."

"Do your worst."

Voldemort shrugged, "Oh well. _Avada Kedavra."_ The green Killing Curse struck Dorea Potter's body as the life faded away from her eyes. The twins were crying loudly by now. Voldemort approached them, failing again to notice the soft golden light that had surrounded Harry and Lucinda.,

"Harry and Lucinda Potter. The banes of my existence. I could have gone to the Longbottoms but well, Longbottom will be taken care of soon enough by my minions. After all, taking out the Potters as well is just a bonus for me. The prophecy will never come true because neither of you will stay alive."

Voldemort looked at the two wondering who he should kill first. As the younger twin, Lucinda was born one minute before July ended, if his source was to be trusted. If it was true, Lucinda would be the one to cause his downfall according to the prophecy. He pointed his wand at the girl and said, "Goodbye, Lucinda Potter. _Avada Kedavra."_ What Voldemort had expected was that the green beam of light would hit the girl and she would leave this plane of existence. What he did not expect was Harry pushing his sister out of the way and taking the force of the curse.

It seemed like a day full of surprises for Voldemort as he saw a large golden dome form over the cradle in a snap as the curse neared it. The curse hit the now visible golden dome, as Voldemort felt sheer agony rush through his body and felt the rip on his body and soul. Out of the corner of his eye, he felt some satisfaction deep down as he saw the curse penetrating the dome and hitting Harry as well. Voldemort screamed his lungs out as the pain increased upon the curse's impact.

_BOOM!_

The magical backlash of the entire thing blew apart the roof of Potter Cottage indicating to the Wizarding World that something big had occurred. Voldemort's wand was flung into the cradle and his body vanished into a pile of dust. The Voldemort wraith knew that the Knights while bound to him would never acknowledge his commands in this form, so he flew away, bristling with anger, biding his time.

The curse had hit Harry just as he pushed his sister out of the way. A broken piece of the cradle impacted Lucinda's forehead and a 'V' shape formed on her forehead. Harry survived the Killing Curse but it left Harry with a symbol of his survival.

A jagged thunderbolt on his forehead.

* * *

**_31 October 1981, 9:46 P.M - Primrose Hill, London_ **

Lily smiled softly as she softly caressed the hand of her husband. She looked up from their conjoined hands and stared into his hazel eyes. The words she said simply slipped out of her lips on their own and even though she had been him for only four years, it felt like the most natural thing in the world. "I love you."

Her smile widened a little as James looked at her with adoration in his eyes, "I love you too, Lils." They were currently sitting in a park and just enjoying the view with each other. It was a rare occasion that they had gone out of the boundaries of either Potter Manor or Potter Cottage and Lily wanted to make the best of it. Lily sighed softly as she leaned her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes.

It had been a difficult year ever since the twins had been born. The prophecy that had hung over them ever since the twins had been born was stressful, to say the least. They had already joined the Order so they had already been on Voldemort's hit list but having two children that could very well be the cause of his downfall, that brought the entire Potter family at the top of the hit list, above even Albus Dumbledore.

She heard James sigh from beside her and looked at him, "What's wrong Bambi?" The name was something she had coined to taunt him in their school days but it had now evolved into a term of endearment that she often used.

James looked at her and sighed again before saying, "I don't know Lily. It's just this feeling. I feel like something has happened, something horrible but I just don't know what." Lily rubbed his back with her hand to calm him down and said, "James, I'm sure nothing monumental has happened. We're in the middle of a war and that feeling is natural. Now, why don't we forget about it for now and just enjoy this evening?" She suggested with a small smirk before she leaned forward and placed a soft and short kiss on James's lips.

Just as James was about to say something they heard a loud crack, which Lily assumed was someone apparting to the area near them and instantly, both of them were on their feet with their wand towards the person who had just appeared. Lily lowered her wand and in an annoyed tone asked, "What are you doing here Peter? I specifically told everyone not to disturb us today."

Peter Pettigrew, or Wormtail as he was often called in the Potter household, panted heavily and looked at them with a panicked expression in his eyes. "Potter… Potter Cottage... Attack…" Peter huffed out. Lily's annoyance instantly fled her as she realised something had happened. Something terrible. Lily looked at James who had the same expression of realisation in his eyes and he walked closer to Peter and asked, "Wormtail… what happened to Potter Cottage?"

Wormatil looked into James's eyes and said, "Voldemort attacked Potter Cottage minutes ago."

Lily's wand slipped out of her hand as her entire body slackened with shock. The one day they had decided to go out, was the day Voldemort had chosen to attack the Potter family. The only people present at Potter Cottage at the moment were James's parents and…

_My babies._

Lily's breath fastened at an alarming rate as the thought of Voldemort killing her children came to the forefront of her mind. She looked at Peter and James, of whom the latter was frozen in shock. Lily's motherly instincts kicked in and she rushed towards James and shook his by the shoulders, "James. James, we have to stay calm. We need to do damage control and make sure nothing has gone wrong." She watched James's eyesight clear of the haziness that had developed and he nodded at her and stood up, helping up Peter as well.

Lily looked at the two of them and said, "Both you, got to Dumbledore and assemble a part of the Order in case there are more Death Eaters there. I'll be going to Potter Cottage to see what has happened and no, this is not negotiable." Lily added as she saw James open his mouth to protest. "I love you James but this is necessary. I'll be able to handle them by the time you come back with reinforcements."

James sighed in defeat and nodded before coming close to her and hugging her tightly. He whispered in her ear, "I love you." James disentangled his arms before looking at her once again and apparating away with Peter. Lily stared at the spot where James had been standing for a moment before she closed her eyes and apparated to Potter Cottage.

_CRACK!_

Lily opened her eyes as her feet touched the ground. She looked around and saw that she was near the church. Her eyes drifted upward and what she saw shocked her. The roof of Potter Cottage had been completely destroyed and smoke was blowing upwards from it. Her panic surfaced immediately and she began running towards the cottage.

She walked through the debris with a horrified look on her face. Her wand was in her hand as she saw the bleeding form of Charlus Potter hunched up against a wall breathing shallowly.

"Charlus!" Lily shouted as she rushed to him. She would have run several diagnostic charms and then healing charms had it not been for a simple shake of the head by her father-in-law.

"L-Lily… C-Check on D-Dorea… A-And the twins." He coughed up blood and Lily knew that he was going to die and he had accepted it. She looked around and saw two men lifeless on the ground with swords being driven into their chests. She didn't really have the time to even question why two men in suits of armour were in their house. Lily nodded as she ran frantically up the stairs, to the nursery door which was blown completely off the hinges. She ran into the room and was both horrified and relieved.

Dorea Potter was lying on the floor, pale and lifeless while her two babies… Harry was unconscious while Lucinda was sitting in the cradle looking at Harry with worry in her eyes as she poked her brother. Lily knew exactly why Lucinda was doing this. She often poked Harry when they were together to rile him up and Harry often reacted by poking her back and since there was no visible reaction from the boy, Lucinda was getting worried.

Lily pocketed her wand and hugged Lucinda tightly and looked into the hazel brown eyes that were similar to her father's.

"Lucinda, what happened?"

Lucinda waved her hands widely as she tried to explain what happened, "Bad man, wed eyes, Hawwy push, gween light. Boom!" At that moment, she realised from even her daughter's broken speech what had happened. She looked at the ground and saw Voldemort's wand and robes sprawled on the ground for the first time.

_The Ritual worked._

Voldemort was gone for now and he was in no condition to attack them once again. Harry's intent to save his sister had vanquished Voldemort for the moment. The Death Eaters would fall in one fell swoop when they would learn about the death of their Master's Death.

Lily sighed a little, relieved that the axe hanging over their heads was gone… for now at least and they could live peacefully for a while. Lily breathed another sigh as she ran diagnostic charms over the two boys. While Lucinda's magical core was charged, Harry's was exhausted but it had taken a huge leap. She knew that James and Albus would be right behind her, so she put an illusion on his magical core to make it seem he was magically exhausted and the capacity of his core was the same as before. She put a sleeping charm on Lucinda and floated the cradle behind her as she went to an untouched room and crashed onto the bed.

Downstairs, as Charlus Potter took his last breath, he looked at the ring on his ring finger on his left hand. It was a golden band fitted with an emerald with two wands crossed over a shield with the letter P engraved on it, signifying the Potter's history as fighters and warriors. People assumed that it was the only ring on his finger.

It was not.

He willed the ring on his middle finger to become visible. The ring was a black band fitted with a black amethyst stone. Instead of the crest of the family with the first letter of the family name, there was a symbol of utmost importance.

A triangle within which were a single stick and a plain circle.

The symbol of the Deathly Hallows.

Charlus knew that this secret, the only one he had kept from both his son and wife would be the salvation of House Potter. This secret he had never revealed to his son because James was arrogant. If he were to realise the true power the Potters held he would lose it in a minute. It would be the one who would bring down Voldemort. This secret would be the one to bring down the Knights of Walpurgis as they had done in the years past.

' _The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.'_ The only family motto in English. Because some things were more important than flair and dramatics. Charlus Potter closed his eyes as he let Death embrace him like an old friend, not as his master, but like an equal, almost like his ancestor. Both the rings vanished from his hand as Charlus Potter left this plane of existence.

The House of Peverell would be the end of Voldemort and the darkness surrounding the House of Potter.

* * *

**_1 November 1981, 10:30 A.M. - Potter Manor_ **

Lily opened her eyes as she rubbed the blurriness out of them. She looked around and smiled softly as she saw the cradle beside her bed. She looked around and realised that she was in her bedroom in Potter Manor. She was about to lay down again before the events of last night crashed into her.

She sat up abruptly before she hurriedly made for the door when she stopped. She knew that if James was awake he would be talking to Dumbledore and this was the only time she could safely hear Dumbledore's plans. She might have been in the Order but that didn't mean she was loyal to Albus Dumbledore nor did she truly trust the man.

She twisted her Heiress Ring and whispered, "Show me, Heir Potter."

An image formed in front of her, where James and Dumbledore were sitting in the study of the Lord sitting on comfortable chairs with grave expressions on their faces.

"James, you know what needs to be done, yes?"

"What?" James asked a bit harshly. His eyes were red and raw which meant he had been crying. He had taken his parent's death hard and Dumbledore did not have the simple courtesy of letting James grieve.

"Lucinda is the one who vanquished Voldemort, the girl-who-lived..."

"Only if you hadn't bloody declared it to the world!" James bit out.

Lily gasped a bit. Dumbledore had got it all wrong. Lucinda wasn't the one who killed Voldemort. Hell, Voldemort hadn't even been _killed._

Dumbledore spoke in his grandfatherly voice, "James, it needed to be done. You know that and I know that. What I'm trying to tell you is that raising two children, where one is as famous as me when she is one year old and the other like a normal child will be very difficult for both you and Lily."

James slumped a bit in his seat as he realised the truth in Dumbledore's words, "What can we do?"

"You can give Harry away to another family." He spoke in a voice that suggested it was an on the spot decision but Lily knew better. She had observed Dumbledore far too much and her talks with Dorea and Charlus had enforced her belief that Dumbledore never suggested something on a whim. He always subtly manipulated people into doing what he wanted. Her eyes narrowed, she cast the diagnostic charm on Harry and gasped as she realised that her illusion was in tears and tatters.

She came to a startling realisation.

Dumbledore knew exactly what happened. He knew that Harry was the real boy-who-lived because even she could see the traces of Dark Magic on Harry that had been leftover and Dumbledore sure could detect.

"Why?" James asked with scepticism. Lily was horrified at no outrageous reaction from James as he talked about one of his sons being given away.

"James,... Voldemort isn't gone. He's alive but barely. He'll come again and we will have to train Lucinda. When Harry doesn't receive the training, he could be insanely jealous and take to the Dark Path. Keeping him in a Light family will allow him to grow in the influence of the Light without realising that he's related to the girl-who-lived."

Her mind went back to the prophecy, one particular line. _Either must die at the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives._ The pieces fell in place. Dumbledore wanted Harry to grow in a family, which was under his thumb to make him a malleable weapon. And when the time came, Harry would die by Voldemort's hand, allowing Lucinda or rather _Dumbledore_ to take the glory.

' _Not if I have anything to do with it. Neither of my children will die.'_

"That's… quite appropriate. But when will we be allowed to tell him the truth of his heritage, because he is the Heir Potter, and I will not disown him."

The smile on Dumbledore's face strengthened the idea that was forming in her head. She looked at the twins, who were sleeping peacefully, unaware of the years that were to come. Lily knew that because of Lucinda's fame she could not take her away from Potter Manor but she could take away Harry and give him to a family she trusted. A family that would take care of him.

All she had to do was find a family who would take care of Harry like their own and she had just the family in mind.

She locked the door to her room and summoned one of the House-elves, to summon every single book that was important to a muggle raised wizard. Books on pureblood cultures, etiquette and history. Books based on the basic working of magic, and other explanations of magic. She sat down and wrote four letters. One to her husband, her daughter Lucinda, one to the family she was going to give Harry to and the most important one to Harry.

This was because she knew what she was about to do could most certainly result in her death because she was going against one of the strongest wizards alive but she would gladly give her life if it meant that both of her children grew to the best of their abilities.

After a few hours, she stood up. She had successfully placed notes in the most important books and she had written the letters. She charmed the letter to James to appear exactly one year after her death while the letter to Lucinda would appear one year before she would go to Hogwarts. She put all the books in the same size into a bag with an expansion charm.

She picked up the closest object she could find, which turned out to be a clock. She wrapped a black cloak around her and wrapped a warm blanket around Harry as she lifted him up. She looked towards Lucinda and leaned forward, placing a soft kiss on her forehead, "I love you Luci, and I'm sure your father will take excellent care of you. But, I need someone to take care of Harry as well. Goodbye Lucinda." Placing another kiss on her eyelids, Lily stood up straight.

She tapped her wand on the clock and whispered, " _Portus."_ The clock glowed blue for a moment and then the glow died down.

Just as she was about to depart from Potter Manor she remembered the Consort's Oath she had taken on her wedding day to James.

_I, Lily Evans, pledge to support the Exalted and Royal House of Potter. I vow to serve the sons and daughters of my house, to teach them all that they must learn, to guide them in my family magics and to safeguard them. I vow to stay loyal to my husband and never stray from my love for him. I vow to offer wise counsel to the head of my house, to stand beside them in times of peace, and guard their backs in times of war. So I swear by my life and magic, so mote it be._

She knew that magic may claim either her life or magic for violating the terms of her oath as what she was about to commit was line theft in a way, but she couldn't care less. She knew that if either one of her children grew away from Dumbledore's influence, she would be happy. She pulled out her Heiress Ring and left it on the table.

She grabbed the portkey and whispered, "Activate." She vanished with a swirl and that was the last time Lily Evans stepped into Potter Manor.

Down in the Lord's study, James winced as he felt the forceful break in the wards around Potter Manor. He checked who used the portkey and his eyes widened at the implications.

"She's gone." James breathed out.

"What?"

"Lily. She's gone and she's taken Harry with her."

"Why Harry?"

James's eyes shot to his Heir ring, "She must have listened in to our conversation."

While Dumbledore looked calm outside, he was cursing up a storm inside. He would never forget the date of 1 November 1980, for it was the date all his well made plans started falling apart.

* * *

**_1 November 1980, 8:26 P.M. - Black Manor, Blackwood_ **

Lily appeared on the edge of the wards of the manor of the Darkest Family in the history of Wizarding Britain. But right now, she was going to meet the Lightest member of that family. The house right now was visible to only her and select others. For anyone else, it was an empty property. She walked through the wards which gave her instant access because she was keyed into the wards. In a moment, Sirius Black appeared in front of her.

He was dressed in muggle clothing, a simple t-shirt and jeans. He had shoulder-length black wavy hair, silvery grey eyes, high cheekbones and a soft aristocratic face. Lily was not ashamed to admit, that had she not fallen in love with James, Sirius could have easily won her over.

"Lily, what's wrong?"

Lily launched into the tale of what had occurred in the last 15 hours or so. Sirius was hiding at Black Manor under the Fidelius Charm, unlike Potter Cottage. Most of what occurred in the outside world reached his ears at least two years later. Lily completed the tale with her explaining what she could about Albus's plans.

Sirius did not know how to react. His emotions were all over the place. He was sad that the couple who he had looked upon as a surrogate mother and father was gone, happy that Voldemort was gone for now and then pure unadulterated rage at his best friends.

How dare Prongs try to give away his godson when he could very well be taken care of?

"What do you need me for?"

Lily's hesitation caused him to be on guard, bracing for her answer, "I want you to adopt him."

Sirius was a bit confused, "In the muggle world, you say?"

Lily shook her head, "Blood adopt him."

Sirius's eyes widened, "Lily… No. I can't do that, the Potter family magic could very well kill you for this. You're allowing the Heir Potter to be adopted into the Black family. The family magics of both families are very different and they could potentially permanently harm Harry. Plus, won't he lose the Potter Heirship because of this?"

Lily shook her head, "I don't know about the first case but I have to take the risk for both mine and Harry's sakes. For the second, no. My blood will be used to power the ritual. The Consort Oath saw to it that Potter blood and family magic ran through my veins. While your blood and Black family magic will run through his veins, the Potter family magic will not leave Harry and he will still be recognised as the Potter Heir."

"But, Lily… This could still kill you."

"I DON'T CARE SIRIUS! Did you not hear what I told you, Dumbledore wants a malleable weapon and I will not allow my son to die at the hands of either Dumbledore or Voldemort. Harry will need all the support he can get when he reenters the Wizarding World and I will very well give my life for it. He might remain the Potter Heir but he won't' be able to take up his Lordship till he's seventeen and what if something happens to you in that time, huh? Who will take care of him then? The man who was willing to give away his son without protesting even one bit?!" Lily knew that James wasn't to blame all too much but she was very frantic right now, the fear of Dumbledore following her clouding her judgement.

Sirius squeezed her shoulder to calm her down and he spoke softly, "I'll do it."

Lily's eyes had tears in them and she nodded thankfully. Sirius guided her to the ritual room of Black Manor which was located in the basement. Lily handed Harry, who was sleeping thanks to a sleeping charm and discarded her cloak. She started inscribing the runes on the ground.

First, she created a pentagram which she surrounded with a circle. She asked Sirius to hand over Harry and she placed Harry in the centre. Sirius stood beside her as she drew the runes around Harry, careful not to touch Harry's body with it. She drew the Algiz rune, which was a straight line branching out to three more straight lines. It symbolized protection.

She drew the Gebo rune which was a simple X and it symbolised a gift, or what she intended it to mean, the rune of love. She drew several other runes and finally asked for Sirius to draw the rune of family on Harry's now naked body.

Lily chanted in Latin for a minute as the runes around Harry glowed with a golden light. She gestured to Sirius who began chanting the oath required for blood adopting a child.

"I, Sirius Orion Black, Head of the Exalted and Royal House of Black, hereby adopt Harry James Potter, Heir to the Exalted and Royal House of Potter as my son and heir. My blood and family magic will run through his veins along with that of his original mother and father. I swear on my life and magic to protect him from any and all who seek to harm him and teach him all that is to learn."

A string of magic erupted from the rune of the family inscribed on Harry's body and shot through Sirius's heart and it seeped into Harry's heart as well. For a moment, both Lily and Sirius held their breath which they let out in a sigh of relief as the string of magic turned blue and vanished into thin air.

Lily stumbled a bit as she felt the family magic within her raging through her body. Sirius caught her and when he was about to tell her to rest, Lily cut him off, "No, Siri. I have to get Harry to mum and dad. They'll take care of him."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

Sirius nodded and they carried a now awake Harry in their arms. Harry's emerald green eyes had a tint of grey in them and his hair and lengthened slightly. They walked out of the Manor into the grounds of Black Manor.

Sirius conjured a small can and whispered, " _Portus."_

Lily turned to him, "Thank you, Siri. When Harry comes to Hogwarts, make sure to take care of him, okay?"

"Why can't you leave him with me?"

"Siri. James will know if you have Harry. James might let you keep him but Dumbledore will not. He will find some way to take Harry away from any family that is not under his thumb."

Sirius nodded, and handed the portkey to Lily, "You have to cross the wards to portkey, I'll take you till the end of the wards."

Lily nodded. She was extremely weak right now and she was quite grateful for Sirius's support as she walked. They reached the edge of the wards and just as he was about to depart, a calm and controlled voice said, " _Sectumsempra."_ The curse hit Lily's leg and cuts started appearing all over her body. Her eyes widened just as Sirius thrust the can into Lily's hand and whispered, "Activate."

Lily spun on the spot and vanished into the air as Sirius flicked his wrist and looked for the attacker, "Step out from where you are standing."

When the attacker stepped out, Sirius snarled, "Dumbledore."

Albus Dumbledore had a disappointed look on his face, "I did not expect you to support Lily, Sirius. You knew that they were the mad ravings of a grieving woman, how could you have helped her?"

"Maybe because you were thinking of abandoning my godson?" He sneered at the strongest wizard of the century.

"It is for the Greater Good. And forgive me for what I'm about to do. _Stupefy. Expelliarmus. Reducto."_

Sirius dodged the three offensive spells and shouted, " _Effusus Sanguis. Fragmina Ossis. Exanimo."_

Dumbledore batted away the spells with practised ease and apparated. Sirius wildly looked around for Dumbledore with his wand raised, ready to attack at first sight. He heard a soft _pop!_ behind him and just as he turned around he felt an arm grasp his forearm.

He felt the familiar feeling of being squeezed into a tube which meant he was being side-along apparated. He appeared in a muggle street which was bustling with muggles. Sirius tried to conceal his wand but he was distracted by a huge explosion ripping through the street. Loud screams from the muggles tore through the air as they found themselves in the radius of the explosion. Sirius tried to jump out of the way but he was held in place in pure shock and it felt as if something was protecting him from the explosion.

As the effects of the explosion receded, Sirius was bound in ropes from behind. He wildly looked around at the brutal scene in front of him. Blood was everywhere including the torn out limbs and internal organs of the victims. He turned around in position to see the grave look on Dumbledore's face as he spoke to his goat Patronus.

He heard the ending of her sentence, "... I have the perpetrator of the crime bound in ropes. Send backup immediately."

As the Patronus flew away, Sirius snarled at Dumbledore, "You set me up."

"It is for the Greater Good. You will understand later."

"When I am out you better be ready for a blood feud against the House of Black, Lord Dumbledore." Sirius spat out.

The smirk on Dumbledore's face did not reassure him that everything was fine and dandy. "Unfortunately, Lord Black, as you will be declared guilty of a crime by the members of the Wizengamot your Lordship will be declared void. The next Lord of House Black will be Harry Potter and he will grow up exactly the way I want."

* * *

**_1 November 1981, 9:30 P.M. - Cokeworth, England_ **

Lily appeared on a street in a bloody mess. The cuts on her body had spread and were bleeding profusely. While she was thankful for the quick getaway she was worried about Sirius. She was sure that the attacker was either Snape or Dumbledore because she had helped the greasy git create the spell and in his need for approval, had blabbed the spell to Dumbledore.

She looked around and saw that very few lights were on in houses and it would give a nice view with the lights in the street if a bloodied woman arrived at the house of the Evans family. She waved her wand and the lights in the street went out with a pop.

She staggered to the door of her parents' house in Cokeworth, which had a few lights turned on and knocked on it tiredly. She heard the gruff voice of her father, Robert Evans as he made his way down the stairs, "Who the bloody hell is at the door at this time?"

The door swung open and when Robert saw the bloodied mess of his daughter he gasped. Lily looked over him and saw that he hadn't changed much in three years. He was a tall man of about 6'1'' staying a little on the lean side. He had black hair which was cut in a short military style and his blue eyes sparkled with concern.

"Johanna, come here quickly!"

Sensing the urgency in her husband's tone, Johanna hurried over to the door after. When she saw her daughter covered in blood, barely holding her grandson, she gasped before she hurriedly hefted Harry from her arms and ushered Lily inside the house.

Lily, however, did not move from her place. She took out the bag which stored the books she had taken with her and withdrew the two letters and placed them in Robert's hands.

"Read the letter addressed to you and give Harry's letter to him on his tenth birthday. You'll find everything in the letter. There are books in this and make sure he reads this when he knows the truth about his heritage."

"Lily…" Johanna began only to be cut off.

"Mum this is the only way. You've seen my condition, only magic could save me and neither you nor Dad has magic. If I'm going to die then I'm going to protect at least one of my sons from Albus Dumbledore. Take care of him."

Normally, Johanna would have taken Lily in her house, by force, and tried to remedy whatever was wrong with her but it was clear as day to her, what with the way Lily was wheezing and bleeding, that she couldn't do anything.

Johanna had tears in her eyes, "Oh, Lily…"

Lily looked at Harry and kissed him on his scar and whispered, "Always remember Harry. Momma loves you and nothing you do will ever change that."

Lily shut the door behind her and walked to the centre of the street and brought out the silver ritual knife she had in her back pocket.

' _It's funny, how Mother Magic would never directly claim me but rather let life play its course._ ' She thought.

' _Guide me, Mother Magic._ ' She thought as she cut her palm and spoke loudly and clearly. The words came to her from a part she had never known, "I, Lily Evans Delacour, daughter of Marie Delacour, Heiress Secondary to the Veela Throne, sacrifice my magic and life to Mother Magic and erect blood wards around Harry James Potter to prevent any and all living beings with even a trace of magic on their person from locating him for the next eleven years and any and all living beings in contact with magic to inflict harm upon the residents of his home. So I say, so mote it be."

' _Delacour? What the hell?_ ' With that thought, Lily Evans Potter née Delacour vanished in a flash of golden light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thanks to NoirWolf5 for alpha reading and to Proton6 and Bob49 for beta reading this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

~~*~~  
 **Part I: The Forgotten's Return  
Chapter II: The Beginning of Something Dangerous  
**~~*~~

_6 November 1980  
Blackthorn Villa_

Surrounded by rows and rows of books around him, a man in his early seventies, sat staring at a particularly engaging article in today's issue of the _Daily Prophet._

_Justice will be Served._

_6th November 1980. Mark the day, for today is one of the most monumental moments in the history of Wizarding Britain. Five days ago, a horrific blast ripped apart an entire part of a Muggle Street, killing more than 15 muggles and leaving several others injured. While this astonishing attack didn't result in any wizarding folk being injured, it could have had many dire consequences, had the Oblivators from the Department of Mysteries not done their job swiftly._

_This incident could have very well resulted in the breaking of the Statute of Secrecy. Just to remind you, dear reader, the Statute of Secrecy is perhaps the biggest asset to all Wizarding folk as it allows us to stay hidden in plain sight. If this Statute is ever broken, our existence would be exposed to all Muggles and its consequences would be dire if not catastrophic._

_Now, you may wonder, who is responsible for an action that could very well wipe wizards out of existence?_

_The man responsible for this is none other than Sirius Orion Black III. It came as a shock to me as well when I learned of the fact that a Lord, the Lord of an Ancient and respected family like the Blacks, no less, was responsible for this. Sirius Black was apprehended by none other than Chief Warlock Albus Dumbledore. While none of the reporters here at Daily Prophet could get a direct word from either the perpetrator or Albus Dumbledore, we have reason to believe that when the incident occurred, Dumbledore had already been on Black's trail. Some might argue that the dark history and insanity seen in some of the Blacks makes this seem very plausible, and I would have to agree._

_Sirius Black, born in 1960, was shunned from his family when he came to Hogwarts because he was sorted into Gryffindor rather than Slytherin. Many of my sources tell me that even though he gained the title of Lord Black soon after he graduated from Hogwarts, it didn't help his situation with the other members of his family. Perhaps, he had thought that causing such a huge explosion to kill muggles and cause general chaos would be the incident allowing him back into the good side of his family, but we may never know the true reason behind this attack._

_In a few hours, Sirius Black will stand in front of the combined power of both houses of the Wizengamot as he tries to plead his way out of the crimes that he has committed. But have no fear dear reader, a criminal like Sirius Black will not be set free, for today, justice will be served._

_Barnabus Cuffe  
Editor of the Daily Prophet_

The man growled to himself as he crumpled the paper in his hands and threw it to the other side of the room. "If Barnabus thinks that I'm going to let him get away with not only declaring Sirius guilty well before the actual trial but also defaming the family name, he's sorely mistaken."

"But… isn't the man somewhat correct regarding the former, master Arcturus?" A squeaky voice spoke up from behind him and Arcturus Black held his temples with his fingers as he tried to relieve himself of the stress that had found its way to him during the past week.

He turned around in his seat and looked at the house-elf. "Tetris… that doesn't give a lowly editor the right to come after the current Lord of the family. If it had been any person other than Sirius, I assure you Barnabus Cuffe would be either dead or in St. Mungo's soon after the first paper came off the printing press." Arcturus wasn't lying to the head house-elf of Blackthorn Villa. He knew that if it had been any other person in Sirius' situation they would have done their very best to retaliate against Barnabus Cuffe even if they were in jail.

Tetris walked over to where Arcturus had thrown the paper and picked it up with her right hand before snapping her fingers and making the paper vanish. Looking back at Arcturus, Tetris said, "And what will you do about it, Master?" She had always been a bold one, never scared of asking anything and Arcturus felt that it was probably because the elf had been in the Villa for over fifty years, even more, dedicated to her work than Kreacher who lived with that wretched niece of his, Walburga Black.

Arcturus stood up from his chair in the study and walked over towards the window that looked over the area surrounding Blackthorn Villa. "I… don't know Tetris. While I am angry that Barnabus declared Sirius guilty in his article, there's a small part of me that believes Sirius is guilty. Although, some things just don't add up. Sirius had never been a blood supremacist, let alone someone who despised muggles, and I just see no way he would have gone to a random muggle street and just blown it apart. Even provoked, the boy wouldn't do something this drastic." Arcturus let his hand glide over his Hawthorn wand as he thought about all the events leading up to Sirius' arrest.

Turning back around, Arcturus began pacing in his study and muttered loud enough for Tetris to hear him, "Something just doesn't add up. 31st of July, Voldemort strolls over to Godric's Hollow like he owns the damn place and kills both Charlus and Dorea Potter but isn't able to kill two _infants._ The very next day, Lily Potter disappears off the face of the Earth and I know for a fact that she dropped by Black Manor at the same time Sirius was present there. Not a few minutes after her departure, Sirius is arrested for killing over 15 muggles. Either this whole thing is a setup or Sirius is covering for someone else." Arcturus twirled his wand in his hand as he tried to sort out all his theories in his mind.

"The man who arrested Sirius was Albus Dumbledore himself and we both know that Albus is no friend of ours." The former Lord of the Black family continued pacing around the study as he muttered to himself before he was interrupted by Tetris.

"Master…"

Arcturus turned to the house-elf and saw her holding a letter in her hand with the seal of the Wizengamot over it. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in before stretching out his hand to allow Tetris to give him the letter. With slightly shaky hands, Arcturus opened the letter and began reading it.

_To Arcturus Phineas Black III_

_It is with a heavy heart that I have to inform you, Sirius Black has been proven guilty on all charges and will now be facing two life sentences in Azkaban. His transfer from the Ministry holding cells to the prison fortress of Azkaban will begin barely minutes after you receive this letter. As Sirius Orion Black III, was the current Lord of the House, House Black finds itself with no representation in the Wizengamot. By a unanimous vote by all the members of the Upper House, you have been appointed as the Regent of the House till the time the next in line is old enough to take the seat. Good luck._

_Yours sincerely,  
Milicent Bagnold - Minister of Magic_

Arcturus held back a heavy sigh as he finished reading the letter, "And here I had thought that I wouldn't have to go back to the treacherous world of the Wizengamot ever again." Arcturus looked at Tetris and continued, "I guess it's time to bring out my Wizengamot robes again Tetris. If you would."

The house-elf bowed and said, "Of course, Master." Without a sound, Tetris vanished from in front of him and apparated to the attic where he had stashed his Wizengamot robes. Arcturus walked over to a particular shelf in his study and raised his hand towards the spine of the book titled, _The History of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black_ , and pulled it back. Soon after, the shelf began shuddering and slowly it came forward before sliding to the other side. Arcturus walked into the hidden room and using his wand, lit all of the torches present there.

As the light from the torches illuminated the room, Arcturus' attention was drawn over to the large tapestry dominating the main wall.

_The Ancient and Most Noble House of Black_

Arcturus walked over to a particular bubble in the tapestry and traced his finger over it, "Arcturus Phineas Black III. _"_ He whispered to himself and looked at the several other connected bubbles. The family tapestry at Blackthorn Villa was directly connected to the magic of the people it depicted and the bubble would glow a soft golden if they were still alive, and unlike the family tapestry back at 12 Grimmauld Place, this one did not have any crossed-out names. Arcturus let his eyes roam over the currently glowing bubbles and rubbed his temples yet again as he saw the minuscule amount of glowing bubbles.

' _When did it all come crashing down?'_

Shaking his head, Arcturus walked out of the hidden room and to his surprise, Tetris was standing there but without his robe. She had a slightly surprised look on her face and Arcturus asked, "What is it, Tetris?"

"Master… Lord Malfoy is waiting outside the boundaries of the Villa, requesting an audience with you." Tetris explained and Arcturus realized that this might have been the reason for her surprise.

' _Of course, the young Malfoy would request an audience with me right after I was announced the Regent of the House of Black.'_

"Let him in, Tetris. This ought to be interesting." Arcturus said with a slight dismissive wave as he began to tidy his study to get ready to talk to Lucius Malfoy, the young Lord who had taken his seat in the Wizengamot nearly five years ago. He heard a sigh from Tetris and he turned back to her, "What?"

"Master, the curse." She said with a pointed gaze.

Arcturus chuckled a little and said, "Ah yes, we wouldn't want _Lord_ Malfoy to be burnt to a crisp now would we?"

"You and I both know that the curse does more than just burn to a crisp," Tetris muttered to herself before she vanished and popped over to what he assumed was the main gate of the Villa where Malfoy was waiting. Meanwhile, Arcturus walked over to his desk, tapped the top drawer with his wand, and watched as it shot open. He had a grim smile on his face as he picked up the big amethyst stone that was laying in there.

" _I, Arcturus Phineas Black III, as Caster of the Nolite Maledicere Sanguinis, hereby allow Lucius Abraxas Malfoy to be exempt for a single day. So I say, so mote it be."_ The amethyst glowed with a deep black light for a few seconds before it went back to its previous state of no activity. Hoping that his words had worked, Arcturus placed back the amethyst in the drawer and locked it once more before he took his seat.

As Arcturus waited for Tetris to guide Lucius towards his study, from the dark corners of the room, a black blur shot up into his lap and Arcturus held back a small chuckle as he looked at the creature responsible for the action. "You never wait for a moment, do you, Craft?" Arcturus smiled as he scratched behind the ears of the black kneazle that had been with him ever since his years at Hogwarts. After a few moments of silence in the study barring the soft content purrs from Craft, Tetris re-entered the study with Lucius Malfoy in tow.

Arcturus looked at the young Malfoy Lord as he made his way into the Black Study. He had to admit that the boy looked remarkably like his father Abraxas Malfoy, a man with whom Arcturus had had quite a few _altercations._ Lucius Malfoy bowed low and said, "Regent Black, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Arcturus spoke from his seat, allowing Craft to stay in his lap as he talked to the young Malfoy, "Now, now, let's not be so hasty, Lord Malfoy. Us being acquaintances is something that is entirely too dependent on the reason why you requested an audience with me not minutes after I was declared the Regent of the House." While it was in Arcturus' nature to make snippy comments like this, he never forgot the proper way to greet someone and continued, "Nonetheless, it's a pleasure to meet you in person." He waved Lucius over to one of the seats in front of him and tilted his head, curiosity shining in his eyes.

Lucius Malfoy gave him a tight smile as the man used his walking stick, which was also presumably a place of concealment for his wand, to walk towards one of the seats. He had to admit that while it was a good place for hiding one's wand, it wasn't the most practical for now since Lucius was only in his twenties and didn't really have a need for a walking stick. "The walking stick yours, Lucius? Or has it been passed down in your house?" Arcturus questioned as he saw some of the older markings on the stick as Lucius set it against one arm of his seat.

Lucius looked at said object leaning against his chair and then back at Arcturus and said, "It's not quite that old Regent Black. My father used to use this and after his death, I just felt obligated to use it once I became the head of the family."

"There's no need to refer to me by Regent Black anymore, Lucius. We're not in a session of the Wizengamot and this is a private meeting where we can forgo formalities, I'm sure." Arcturus flicked his wrist and with a flourish of his wand, a bottle of his finest whiskey came floating towards his desk along with two pristine glasses. Pouring the drink into the glasses, Arcturus held one out to Lucius and asked, "Now, onto business."

Lucius took a sip from his glass and spoke up, "I have a request that can affect both you and myself in the Wizengamot."

Arcturus looked at Lucius and he had to suppress a small smile. The way Lucius carried himself when the Wizengamot was in session or his public appearances he presented to the world the visage of a man who knew what he was doing in the political world but the truth was in front of his eyes right now. Lucius might act somewhat confident in this arena but he was largely unsure and confused as to which direction he had to progress. Arcturus had most certainly not learned the workings and manoeuvres in a single day; in fact, it had taken him _years_ to come to the position he held now.

"Do go on, Lucius."

"I _need_ the support of House Black in the Hauhcubes Ejwent."

Arcturus cocked an eyebrow in surprise as he heard the tone of desperation in Lucius' voice. Setting down his glass, Arcturus crossed his arms over the table and asked, "Need?"

"The Allies of the _Xrjeb wetrene Cuprianot-_ " Lucius began but he was cut off by Arcturus.

"Lucius, it's just you and me and Tetris here. You can cut the crap of " _Xrjeb wetrene Cuprianot_ ". You and I both know what the actual title of the party is."

Lucius wrinkled his nose and replied, "Regent Black as much as I respect you, the term 'Dark' is far too derogatory and I refuse to use that term." He cleared his throat and continued, " As I was saying, the Allies of the _Xrjeb wetrene Cuprianot_ need convincing. The Dark Lord is gone and we're a tattered group right now. Most of them are looking at me to lead them because of the actions of my father as The Dark Lord's right hand when he was alive. Some doubt my power to lead and some just need convincing that we have enough power to actually counter the Light in the Wizengamot. I don't want to use the more _conventional_ methods just yet and I want them to actually believe I can lead them."

"And why," Arcturus began as he leaned back in his chair, "Would I ever support the Dark?"

"Because you have no other choice."

Arcturus raised his eyebrow once more and said, "Are you threatening me, Lord Malfoy?" The newly appointed Regent Black didn't make any move whatsoever because he knew that Lucius did not have the courage to attack him in his home.

Lucius cleared his throat and said, "I'm not threatening you, Arcturus. You and I both know that one has to play the odds in the Wizengamot and I've done my research, Arcturus. You truly don't have any other choice when it comes to aligning yourself to a faction now."

"Hmm, be that as it may, I'm curious to hear what you have concluded from your 'research'."

Lucius took another sip from his glass and tapped his foot against the hardwood of the floor which told Arcturus that Lucius was nervous, and rightly so because both of them knew that if Lucius said anything to disparage the House of Black, he could be seeing the end of a full-fledged Honour Duel. "There are three factions in the Wizengamot, The Light, Grey, and the Dark sides. The Gray is frankly even more in tatters than we are after the torture of Alice and Frank Longbottom and the death of Walter Greengrass. While there is a chance that your alignment with them could help them survive, you won't join the Gray simply because House Frost is a major voice for them and the entire Wizarding World knows of your not-so-quiet feud with Lord Travis Frost.

"Albus Dumbledore was the one who arrested Sirius, and we both know that you won't align yourself with him even if you truly believe that Sirius is guilty." Lucius took in a deep breath, "Face it, Arcturus, your best bet lies with us. With Regulus' death, you have no heir and from what I've heard Sirius named _Harry Potter_ the heir in his will. The same Harry Potter who is the brother to the Girl-Who-Lived," Lucius rolled his eyes at the moniker, "And will most probably grow up under Albus' tutelage once someone finds him."

Lucius' whole speech regarding which side he should choose, while convincing, was enough to startle Arcturus not once but twice. He would have had a more visible reaction had he been alone but the only indication that Lucius' speech had held quite a few shocks for him was the slight twitch in his left eye.

"'Someone finds him'? Is the young Potter missing?" Arcturus asked as he drummed his fingers against the wood of his table.

"This isn't public yet, but while James Potter only mentioned that Lily was missing, he omitted the fact that the woman vanished along with Heir Potter," Lucius whispered as he leaned in closer, as if afraid of the fact that someone else would hear him.

' _Interesting. Lily Potter vanished along with Harry Potter, the day after her daughter was declared the saviour of the world.'_ Arcturus looked back at Lucius and processed all the information that he had gotten up till now. ' _Harry Potter is also the heir to House Black.'_ This piece of information hit him like a wrecking ball and Arcturus gripped the edge of his table tightly as he felt a hot wave of anger rush through his veins. ' _A_ _ **Potter,**_ _the head of House Black. Not going to happen.'_

Lucius looked at Arcturus with slight apprehension as the man gripped the table even tighter, "Everything alright, Arcturus?"

Arcturus waved him off. "It's nothing." After a few moments of silence, Arcturus began speaking, "Say that House Black does align with the Dark from now on. What about the Dark Lord? He has been a pretty influential part of the Dark side and there is no way I'm going to align myself with a megalomaniac who was responsible for the death of half my family," Arcturus finished, a hint of anger slipping through.

Lucius gulped a little as he felt the anger emanating from the older man. "The Dark Lord is gone. For now at least." Lucius raised his left arm and pulled back his sleeve to show the faded Dark Mark. "You can denounce the Dark Lord for all I care, but right now we need stability in the Wizengamot and I could care less about an almost dead Dark Lord coming back to kill me because one of my allies denounced his name."

Arcturus' eye twitched when he saw the mark but said nothing regarding it. He had already known that Lucius was a Death Eater, but whether forced or willingly, he did not know nor did he care. In his eyes, the only person responsible for the death of his family was Voldemort. He thought about what to do and even though he didn't want to admit it, for now at least, aligning with the Dark seemed like the best option.

"Lucius… Lord Malfoy, for now, I'm willing to align with the Dark. While I did have some doubts before about joining the Dark, you may have just convinced me that it won't be as bad as I had previously imagined." He stood up from his seat and held out his hand, "The House of Black will stand by your side."

For probably the first time during the entire duration, Arcturus saw Lucius break out a real smile. He could practically see the relief in the young Malfoy's eyes but chose not to comment on it. Lucius stood up from his seat and shook Arcturus' hand, "Thank you, Arcturus. You won't regret this."

Arcturus smiled and nodded at Lucius before calling out, "Tetris!" The house-elf appeared with a pop beside him.

"Yes, Master?"

"Show Lord Malfoy to the gates, please."

"Of course." Tetris bowed before she gestured towards Lucius to follow her. Lucius nodded at him and picked up his walking stick before heading out of the study. Arcturus sat in his seat as he watched the other Lord walk out of his study. When Lucius was almost out of his view, Arcturus spoke in a low, menacing tone, "Oh, and Lucius? Don't ever _think_ of trying to betray me. I assure you that you will regret it." He flicked his wrist and incanted, " _Accio vial."_ A small vial shot from one of the cabinets of the bookshelves and landed in his palm. The vial had a string of a silvery substance floating in it and Arcturus floated it towards Lucius who caught it in his palm. "This will show you what happened the last time a Malfoy tried to double-cross me."

Arcturus had a sickeningly sweet smile on his face as Lucius turned towards him with a look of shock before rushing out of the study. Arcturus grinned a little, satisfied with the way he had ended the meeting, and raised his glass to his lips so that he could take another sip. After a few more seconds of simply sitting in his chair and taking occasional sips from his glass, Arcturus stood up with his wand in hand.

He walked over to a bookshelf on his left and with his wand pointed at it whispered, " _Revelio."_ The bookshelf slid to the left, revealing an ornate fireplace, a floo network that was only to be used in emergencies. Arcturus took a small amount of floo powder and threw it into the fireplace, "Primrose Court, Seville." He didn't enter the fireplace, knowing that the person on the other side would get the message soon enough.

Arcturus walked back towards the bookshelf which held the entrance to the hidden room and pulled back the book so that the shelf slid over. He walked towards the tapestry and traced his hands over the bubble that read, _Regulus Arcturus Black._

" _With Regulus' death, you have no heir…"_

' _It seems that Regulus found a way to escape Voldemort and his lackeys after all.'_ Arcturus thought to himself as he looked at the slight golden glow around the bubble. Smiling to himself, happy with how the boy had finally seen the light, Arcturus turned around and walked out of the secret room.

"Boo!" A voice spoke from his right as soon as he exited the room which almost caused him to trip and fall flat on his face. His head snapped up from where the voice had originated and he resisted the urge to growl out loud when he saw the culprit.

"You know how much I hate it when you do that."

Cassiopeia Black grinned at her older brother with mischief glinting in her eyes, "You always scared easy, brother."

"For your information, I do not scare easily." He glared at the woman. Cassiopeia Black had blood red hair which reached her waist and she was dressed in her usual attire of a dark green blouse and blue pants with her robe cast out on one of the seats in the study.

Cassiopeia smirked at him, "I'm afraid I have to disagree based on how high you jumped just then and all the other times that I've scared you." Arcturus was about to say something when he heard a slight hissing come from Cassiopeia's sleeve which sounded suspiciously like giggling.

"You brought the damn snake?"

Cassiopeia looked at him with mock offence, "Hey! The snake has a name. Gladys. Say it with me, Glah-dis." Arcturus rolled his eyes and didn't bother to even follow her instructions. There was no way he was gonna call that snake by its name. He despised the snake's existence and he knew that was the main reason Cassiopeia brought the snake along with her everywhere.

" _He'sss jussst jealousss."_

Arcturus saw Cassiopeia bring her sleeve up to her mouth after the series of hisses and he rolled his eyes yet again when she began speaking the snake's language, which he could in no way understand.

" _Well of courssse he isss. Plusss, he'sss a grumpy old man."_ Cassiopeia giggled as she finished speaking.

Arcturus narrowed his eyes at his younger sister. "What are both of you talking about?"

Cassiopeia looked at him with wide innocent eyes. "Nothing."

"I don't believe you."

Cassiopeia chuckled at Arcturus' blunt response and took a seat in front of him before she flicked her wrist and summoned a glass for herself. She poured a drink for herself and rested her legs on the desk as she leaned back in the chair, "So, why'd you call me here? I was quite enjoying my time away from the mess that is Britain."

Instead of answering her question straight away, Arcturus looked at her feet resting on his table, "There's no point in asking you to move your feet, is there?"

"Not a chance."

Arcturus sighed but continued nonetheless, "I was appointed Regent of House Black today after Sirius was convicted."

Cassiopeia snorted loudly, "You're going back to the Wizengamot? Oh, how father would have loved to see this day. You going back to the Wizengamot after you spat in his face and told him that you were never going back there again. Oh, this is fantastic!"

"Yes, I'm so glad that you're getting joy out of my misery."

"It's my job."

"Maybe I shouldn't have summoned you here."

"Well, that's on you then cause now you're not getting rid of me just yet."

Arcturus rubbed his temples and said, "Cass, did you not hear the part where I said that Sirius was convicted? Wasn't Sirius your favourite grand nephew? Doesn't that part worry you?"

Cassiopeia set down her glass and looked Arcturus dead in the eye, "He still is, Arty. I might live in Seville but that doesn't mean I'm entirely unaware of what happens in Britain, especially when it involves members of my family. I don't care what you believe or the Wizengamot has ruled- I know that Sirius is not guilty even though circumstances may suggest so. Sirius Black is one of the kindest people I have ever known and there is no way he would have blown up an entire street of muggles."

Arcturus' eye twitched at the nickname that he despised but chose not to comment on it. He knew better than to argue with Cassiopeia when she was serious about anything, especially when it came to Sirius. He loved his grandson but the connection Sirius had with his little sister was unique and something he had _never_ seen when it came to the different generations in the House of Black.

"Moving on… Soon after I received this letter," Arcturus put the letter in front of her that informed him of his appointment, "Lucius Malfoy arrived at the gates of Blackthorn Villa requesting an audience with me."

Cassiopeia cocked an eyebrow at the information. "Interesting. What did the young Malfoy want with you?"

"He wanted me to ally with the Dark."

"Which you agreed to do, didn't you?" Cassiopeia asked him with a narrowed gaze.

"Of course I did. Did you really believe that given the current state of the factions I would ally with any other? Even if Lucius hadn't come to me I would have sided with them of my own volition." Arcturus looked at the right above the door of the study where the crest of House Black was embroidered, "Frost is a measly rat who irritates me to the point that I might kill him and Albus Dumbledore…" The name caused an involuntary growl to emanate from Cassiopeia's throat and he knew that she had enough reason to hate the man. "Is someone that I won't even think of allying with."

"Fine, I understand your reasoning, but that isn't the main reason you called me here is it?" Cassiopeia tilted her head as she looked at him with curiosity raging in her eyes.

"It is not." Arcturus drummed his fingers against the table and continued, "Since Sirius was convicted by the Wizengamot and its Ancient Laws, his position as the Head of House has most certainly been declared forfeit by the Black Family Laws. As of this moment, House Black is without an heir."

"What?!" Cassiopeia slammed her hands on the desk and stood up, "How in the name of _Merlin,_ is that possible?!"

Arcturus chose not to answer her question and continued, "That's not all. Sirius… named Harry Potter, the Heir of House Potter, as the future Head of House Black." Arcturus did find some satisfaction at seeing Cassiopeia slack-jawed and overcome with shock at the information he had just given her, even though this was a situation that they had never thought they would be in.

"HE DID WHAT?! He named a POTTER as the HEIR?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Cassiopeia exploded after a few seconds of silence.

"Oh, there's more."

"Oh, Merlin." Cassiopeia moaned as she slid back into her chair. When she had received the message from Blackthorn Villa, she had assumed that Arcturus wanted to just chat with her about Sirius' conviction but this was something she would not have expected in her wildest dreams.

Gladys the snake poked out her head from beneath Cassioepeia's sleeve and looked at the woman. " _Isss everything okay?"_

Cassiopeia looked at Gladys with a smile on her face and stroked her head. " _It isssn't but I'm sssure given time, it will be."_ Cassiopeia focused her attention back on Arcturus.

"You know how I've kept a tracker on Black Manor, which allows me to see which outsiders enter and exit the Manor?"

"Of course I do. I helped you set it up." Cassiopeia replied as she rolled her eyes.

"The day Lily Potter vanished, she visited Black Manor. Stayed there for a while and minutes after she left the Manor, Sirius was arrested by Dumbledore." Arcturus hummed to himself thoughtfully and continued, "Lucius Malfoy told me that along with Lily, Harry Potter vanished as well. I can only assume that Lily took the boy with her given that James Potter hasn't made this news public yet, which means that at some point baby Harry Potter also entered the Manor."

"... And let me guess, he didn't show up on the tracker." Cassiopeia finished as she massaged the bridge of her nose.

"Yes. I can only think of two reasons as to why he didn't show up on the tracker. The first being, Harry Potter is not an outsider since he's the rightful heir to the House, the other being…" Arcturus trailed off unsure whether he should put forward his theory. There was a small part of him that felt that if he voiced his theory it might be actually true.

Cassiopeia narrowed her eyes as she waited for her brother to continue. "The other being what?"

"Blood adoption, which would clearly rule out Potter being an outsider."

Cassiopeia groaned into her hands, "Please, _please_ tell me that you're sure Sirius did not adopt Harry Potter."

"I have no way to confirm it, Cass."

"Harry Potter won't appear on that stupid tree of yours either?" She asked hoping there was some way to make sure that Sirius hadn't adopted a Potter into their family.

Arcturus sighed heavily, "Unfortunately not. The tree only displays true family, those who have been Blacks from the very beginning. We can't be sure if Harry Potter is a Black in any way that is available to us right now."

Cassiopeia massaged her temples as the information she had received in the past few minutes completely registered. She looked back at Arcturus with a rueful smile and said, "I'll bet you 1000 galleons that dad's rolling in his grave since a Potter stands to inherit the Black fortune and power."

"I'm not making a bet that I'll lose for sure if I take the other side, Cass," Arcturus replied with a similar smile.

"Merlin, I miss the times when our biggest worry was whether our father was going to find out we were hanging out with _filthy mudbloods and half-bloods._ " Cassiopeia ended her sentence in a poor imitation of Cygnus Black.

"Believe me, I miss those days as well." Arcturus sighed as he took one final sip of the whiskey in his glass.

The siblings enjoyed a moment of silence as they reminisced about days long gone. It was Cassiopeia who broke the silence. "Back to the problem at hand. You said that House Black is without an heir. What about Regulus?"

Arcturus stood up from his seat and walked towards the window that was closest to him. He gazed out of the window with a faraway look in his eyes and a small smile on his face. "Regulus is dead."

"What? When did that happen?"

"I don't know," Arcturus replied. "It seems that he tried to defy Voldemort and paid the price. Nonetheless, I'm glad that Regulus saw the light in the end, even though he had to pay the price with his life." Arcturus wasn't sure why he didn't tell Cassiopeia the truth but he knew all he wanted was for Regulus to enjoy some time away from all the mess that had been created by Voldemort.

"That's unfortunate to hear. We have no way to retrieve his body either, do we? For a proper funeral?"

Arcturus shook his head, "I didn't get the news until Malfoy told it to me. It seems that my days away from the Wizengamot have made me a little rusty and I'll need to find some new informants."

"That you will." Cassiopeia nodded and finally asked the question that would define her involvement in this whole scenario, "I know you have a way out of this whole mess. What do you need me to do?"

Arcturus turned around, the gears turning around in his mind as he weighed the pros and cons of what he was about to ask of Cassiopeia. After a few moments of contemplating within his mind, Arcturus looked at Cassiopeia and began speaking.

"I need you to find Harry Potter."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thanks to NoirWolf5 and Proton6 for alpha reading the chapter and Bob49 for beta-reading the chapter!
> 
> I'm quite grateful to Proton6 who has allowed me to use the language he has constructed for my story. Make sure to check out his stories, they are by far some of the best Harmony stories written. 
> 
> I've been quite late with this update but I had exams so was busy for quite a while then needed to work on the finer points of the story so that took some time as well. But, I've finally finished the chapter and here it is. Hope you all enjoyed it and continue reading the story :)

**Author's Note:**

> This story is a rewrite of my previous work Harry Potter and the Knights Eternal. As stated above, I was not quite that happy with how I had written that version and thus, chose to begin writing it from scratch.
> 
> Feels so good to upload a chapter after 2 months. Life's been hectic quite a lot and there was a time where I didn't feel like writing. But, then came December where I decided to reevaluate Knights Eternal and well, I didn't feel quite that happy with it and decided to rewrite it in a better, more detailed way. Yes, I'm very indecisive at times (believe me, it's a problem) but I'm hoping this year goes well and I can complete the story… well, a major part of this at least.
> 
> The story is rated M. There will be swearing in the story as well as several snogging scenes in the later years. Smut is something I'm unsure about as of yet but it remains a possibility. The MAJOR reason as to why this story is rated this is because of the violence, gore and prominence of several triggering topics. I won't go into them just yet but I suggest you do not read this story if you are easily triggered. This story will be dark.
> 
> This chapter was beta read by NoirWolf5, Proton6 and Bob49 (on AO3).
> 
> That's all from me right now. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!


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